Chicago, IL – Religious leaders across Cook County applauded State’s Attorney Anita Alverez’s announcement this morning that her office will no longer prosecute misdemeanor marijuana possession cases and will steer Class 4 felony cases to community-based drug treatment programs.
By Rev. Alexander E. Sharp
When writer and move director Nora Ephron offered advice to aspiring authors, she would often say, “Voice, voice, more voice.” What she meant was that good writers must be authentic. They must be honest. They must eliminate the distance between head and heart. In her recently published book, Change of Heart, Jeanne Bishop is so authentic it takes your breath away.
Today’s guest blogger is Bill Fried, Director of Programs and Financial Administration for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition [LEAP]. At LEAP, Bill creates and oversees such programs as Cops and Clergy; he also has extensive experience in the non-profit field and his opinion pieces have appeared in the Boston Globe and on National Public Radio.
By Rev. Alexander E. Sharp
As we launch the website for Clergy for a New Drug Policy, perhaps I might be permitted a personal note. What do we intend with this project? Why do we think it is necessary?
The main purpose would seem to end the so-called War on Drugs. We have spent over $1 trillion since 1970 to fight a failed war that has turned us into a prisoner nation, divided us by race, and failed to reduce drug use or availability. So, yes, ending the War on Drugs is what we are about.
But there is a more fundamental purpose. We need to transform the culture of punishment that has afflicted our nation since its earliest days. Read More
By Rev. Alexander E. Sharp, CNDP Director
![Illinois State Capitol Uploaded by AlbertHerring [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons](http://newdrugpolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Illinois_State_Capitol.jpg)
Illinois State Capitol Uploaded by AlbertHerring [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Second, the CRS decision tells us that current drug policy is clearly seen as a failure, even where it is most visible, namely in communities of color. Many congregations which support CRS are located in Chicago neighborhoods burdened by poverty and violence. Everyday residents see how drugs have devastated their communities. Drug use breeds violence, destroys families, and ruins individual lives. So why decriminalize marijuana? More broadly, why should one ever support a policy that seems to condone drug use?
There are several key points.
